Of Abortions And Victims

Thursday, May 28, 2015

LOL. I am laughing because I wanted to start this post by saying I would resume blogging more frequently, but then I remembered that was the exact same way I started the last post, which was ages ago. So, let's just go with the flow. Shall we?

My post is going to be slightly controversial, but then again, is there something that isn't these days? About three to four weeks ago, some girls were rescued by the Nigerian army from a Sambisa forest in Borno state, Nigeria. These girls were reportedly NOT the same girls from Chibok that had been missing for over a year. Now, from what I know, apart from the Chibok girls, no other children were declared abducted. Therefore, these children were not only missing, they were not even searched for. Thankfully, the good people of the Nigerian army found them. I'll be honest, I have not been particularly following that story, or any other, for that matter. One thing was for sure however, MANY of these girls were visibly pregnant. That means they were sexually abused while in hostage. I woke up yesterday morning and saw some tweets on Twitter that just did not sit well with me. Let's just say I was really confused.

They were tweets about whether or not these girls should have an abortion. From what I could deduce, it seemed like some people had called for the government to insist on a mandatory termination of the pregnancies. Some others thought that abortion is a sin and therefore should never be allowed, no matter the circumstance. In most cases, when I argue with certain people, I don't really care about their stance on the issue being discussed; my main focus is usually HOW they back that stance up; the reasons they give for their positions. It's a free world after all, and in most cases you are entitled to your opinion.

I thought and thought about this issue all morning yesterday, and I wondered, am I simplyconforming or is this how I truly feel about this situation? Because honestly, people shove so many ideas down our throats these days, and conforming to the world has never been easier. But no, that's not what this was. This is not a prochoice or pro-life argument either. This is me being genuinely confused. Abortion is illegal in Nigeria, except when performed to save the life of the woman. But you and I know that we all know people who regularly have abortions. There are at least 760,000 abortions EVERY YEAR in Nigeria (Al Jazeera, 2013). But we are not here for statistics. Hypothetically (and this is a very unfounded assumption), one in every 10 persons arguing on Twitter yesterday knows someone who has had an abortion at some point or the other. Hypothetically.

I am a very black or white person, but I ask, is this not a grey area? Folks on Twitter said these pregnant victims should not be allowed to have an abortion because it is evil, a sin, and just wrong. I understand their argument. My confusion, however, stems from several questions I have: these girls, who were raped, assaulted, and left to starve, should they not be allowed to make these huge decisions themselves, of course with the help of their parents? On of the girls said, she was used as a sex machine throughout the abduction. I just wonder if the victims go ahead to have these children, what happens next? From the moment those kids were abducted, each one of them had her childhood snatched from her. How do you explain to a teenager who is probably already angry with the entire universe that it's not bad enough that she was traumatized, she is going to have to live with the product of that trauma for the rest of her life? Who is going to do these telling and explaining to the victims? How can people who I am sure are suffering from immense PTSD raise children successfully? Just ponder on these questions carefully.

While you are at it, if you were in the position of these girls, can you honestly say that given the same circumstances, you would in fact preserve the child? Actually, there is no way for you or I to understand what these children have gone through. Except of course you were randomly taken from your parents as a teenager by hostile men, and assaulted endlessly. If not, maybe we all should take a step back and keep quiet. None of us has a say in this.

My argument isn't really about what's right or wrong. It's not about whether abortion is right or wrong. In fact, my point is that this is not the time for such an argument. My point is that this is a very unusual circumstance and should be treated as such. We can't just go on social media, and harangue others about what is right or wrong in something we know absolutely nothing about. After all, even Jesus said, let he who has never sinned cast the first stones. The most important aspect of this decision should be those girls. They have suffered enough, and I think that whatever decision is made, it must be in their best interest.

P.S:
Nigeria begins with a brand new administration, headed by the General Buhari tomorrow. Gidddyyyyyyyyyyy! Expectant!!!!! Hopeful!!!!